Here are a couple of items that I meant to get online last week. Best of intentions, oh well...

U.S. District Judge James A. Redden, who has served on the federal bench in Oregon since 1980 and has rejected three different operating plans put forth by three different presidential administrations for the Columbia River hydropower system, will step down.

Photo by Torsten Kjellstrand, The Oregonian

In an e-mail to attorneys in the long-running legal battle over the hydrosystem, the judge said he would leave the bench before Jan. 1, 2014, the deadline for the government to file a new plan addressing dams and endangered salmon in the Columbia River Basin.

"Dear Counsel," the judge wrote Nov. 22. "At our last meeting I indicated that I would step down prior to the filing of the 2014 BiOp. I struck the 2000 BiOp, and the 2004 BiOp, and the 2008/2011 BiOp. I will file a Notice of Case Reassignment. The Chief Judge and other Article III Judges of this court will assign this case to a'“new' Article III Judge. This will allow time for that judge to review the history of this matter before the 2014 BiOp is filed.

"Neither [Pat] Ford, [executive director of Save Our Wild Salmon], nor Will Stelle, Northwest regional director of the NOAA Fisheries Service, expect a new judge to take a course significantly different from Redden.

Meanwhile, down the coast from Redden, Oliver Wanger, only recently retired from the bench in Fresno, is representing Westlands Water District in an action in state court.

Photo by Tracey Scharmann/KQED

The former federal judge, who decided numerous significant cases involving water management in California, told the Los AngelesTimes, "It’s one case only in the state court. It involves matters of law and fact that I, of course, had nothing to do with and no association with” as a federal judge.

"I obviously am bound by the canons of ethics and judicial conduct and will observe those scrupulously,” Wanger also told the newspaper, which reported that he "has been a featured speaker at several meetings of water contractors since he left the bench Sept. 30."

There was criticism of the judge's choice of clientele, however. In an editorial, the Sacramento Bee said, "his decision to work for Westlands throws into question his past impartiality, since he was at the center of so many cases involving this water district and previously ruled on similar lawsuits involving federal statutes."

The Bee also noted that on Oct. 3, three days after Wanger put down his gavel, "a major Westlands landowner emailed an invitation to growers announcing that Wanger would be the guest speaker at a political event for a local supervisor who used to clerk for Wanger. 'Judge Oliver Wanger has been key in supporting Valley agriculture and its lawful access to essential water!,' said the flier sent by Westlands grower Mark Borba."

Wanger is not violating any federal ethics rules, since his representation is in a case in state, not federal, court. But the Bee said he was especially tough on federal scientists in the last water case he presided over, calling one biologist a "zealot" and questioning another's credibility.

FWS National Digital Library
A searchable collection of selected images, historical artifacts, audio clips, publications, and video, all in the public domain. “Use them as you wish – no permission is necessary. We do ask that you please give credit to the photographer.”

Enviros

National Audubon Society
Founded in 1905, Audubon says its mission is “to conserve and restore natural ecosystems, focusing on birds, other wildlife, and their habitats for the benefit of humanity and the earth’s biological diversity.”

Ctr. for Biological Diversity
From CBD website: “Because diversity has intrinsic value, and because its loss impoverishes society, we work to secure a future for all species, great and small, hovering on the brink of extinction.”

Defenders of Wildlife
Founded in 1947, DoW is “focused solely on wildlife and habitat conservation and the safeguarding of biodiversity. We believe in the inherent value of wildlife and the natural world.”

Ducks Unlimited
“Ducks Unlimited is the world’s leader in wetlands and waterfowl conservation. DU got its start in 1937 during the Dust Bowl when North America’s drought-plagued waterfowl populations had plunged to unprecedented lows.”

Env'l Defense Fund
“Guided by science, [EDF] evaluates environmental problems and works to create and advocate solutions that win lasting political, economic and social support because they are nonpartisan, cost-efficient and fair.”

National Wildlife Federation
“Global warming, the loss of habitat, and people becoming more disconnected from nature than past generations are converging on a dangerous path for our planet. The work of NWF and our affiliates across the country provides answers to these challenges.”

Industry

American Farm Bureau Fed.
Founded in 1919, “Farm Bureau is local, county, state, national and international in its scope and influence and is non-partisan, non-sectarian and non-secret in character. Farm Bureau is the voice of agricultural producers at all levels.”

AF&PA
American Forest & Paper Association. Home page says “significant reform of the U.S. tax system, leading to a lower tax burden, is necessary for the U.S. forest products industry to better compete in the global marketplace.”

Nat'l Ass'n of Home Builders
From web page: “NAHB is a trade association that helps promote the policies that make housing a national priority. Since 1942, NAHB has been serving its members, the housing industry, and the public at large.”

Nat'l ESA Reform Coalition
NESARC’s been around since 1991. Board of directors includes NAHB, AFBF, EEI and AF&PA. Go to nesarc.org/members-and-staff/ for more on the organization